1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a method for providing power in a commercial aircraft, and to a device for providing the power to the aircraft.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
Measures such as these are described in DE 10 2005 054 883 A1 for power supply units with fuel cells. These are used there for recharging electrical and water stores in movable automatic drinks dispensers for use in the cabin of a passenger aircraft. During the course of recharging the electrical rechargeable battery in the automatic drinks dispenser in order to allow it to be operated, the hot water which is created as a reaction product in the fuel cell is passed to the automatic drinks dispenser in order to dispense or brew drinks. A plurality of such power supply units are installed in different areas of the aircraft, in particular in the forward and aft galleys and in the center area of the passenger cabin in order to be moved there for replenishment of the automatic drinks dispensers, in the course of providing the passenger services. However, the replenishment of the fuels for the fuel cells which are installed in a distributed form throughout the cabin is itself problematic since this is highly labor intensive and, in particular, is safety-critical because of the liquid hydrogen. This must be carried out in parallel with cabin cleaning by specialist personnel who are specialized in this field, after the aircraft has landed. For this reason, it has until now been impossible to actually use fuel cells in air transport.